Darren.

FWIW, I've been using the single uni knot for FC lately. Especially since reading this: http://www.bassmaster.com/tips/tackle-aaron-martens Has been fantastic on weedless hooks and such -- but I tie a snell when I've got a free shank.

Welcome aboard!

Welcome aboard, Rudy!

What whitwolf said. Just do it, it'll save you potential headaches and hundred $$ +/- possibility in fines if caught.

Like others, some of my rigs are tied on for days. And yes, sometimes I will tie new stuff the night before. I always (ok, 99.327% of the time) check lines before first cast. If I feel anything on the line that gives me pause, I change it out. But if all's well on the line, I rarely worry about the terminal knot. I've got 100% confidence in my snell, uni, and Palomar knots.

You can catch with whatever rod works, Bill. I STILL will use simple long poles (like cane poles, only better) to fish. I have even used them to target bass.

Welcome aboard, JAF! That's a beast in your pic. Nice!

It is probably the knots you're tying. I use P-Line Floroclear and love it. But I also use Yo-Zuri Hybrid. Both are excellent lines. My personal opinion is the Floroclear has better coloring (I use mist green) over YZ's camo green. The FC disappears better to my eyes. But I have caught some hefty bass on P-Line Floroclear with 6, 8, 10, 15 lb test. I've rarely had the line snap on me unless I was into toothy critter areas, or in timber with too-light test. As well, if you had any snags and hard pulls to free it, it may very well have lost some strength. Don't think Yo-Zuri Hybrid is THE answer. It isn't. It IS excellent line, but I've had it break on me. On one of my rigs I use YZH 10lb test leaders. My knots don't break, but the line can - any line can. As well, make sure your drag is set correctly. So before you strip it off your reel, try using the Palomar, Uni (5-7 wraps), or Snell knots when tying your hooks. Definitely moisten the knots before cinching down.

LOL!

Welcome aboard!

Welcome aboard, Bruce!

Welcome aboard, Mike!

I agree with Tom. And I also agree with comments on the 50e. I absolutely love Daiwa's brake system(s) - and I own a Chronarch 50e as well... My Lexa is easier to dial in for zero backlashes than the 50e, but the Shimano is much smoother (to be expected from a much more expensive reel). Should mention that the Lexa brake system is not as good as the Tatula. Don't own Lews, but they're obviously getting a lot of rave reviews, and as loyal a following as Shimano.

First off, welcome to the forums! Stop by the Introduction forum and say hey. I have St. Croix Premier and Shimano Compre - previous version. I am not a big fan of the new versions, feel tip-heavy to me which I do not like. In fact, the Premier is also a bit tip-heavy. Between the two current generations, toss up. I like the weight of Veritas, but never pulled the trigger. Now I was in BPS the other day and they have the new Daiwa Lexa rods. Holy cow are those things light in the tip. They also have a 5 year warranty, same as the Premier. If you can get your hands on some, see what you think. Otherwise, if you like a "heavier" tip (yeah, subjective just like sensitivity), Compre for warranty, Premier otherwise.

I have an aluminum 16' Grumman I no longer fish out of, kayak (hybrid) now. But when I did, like AJ, I mounted a motor, but took along maybe 3, at most 4 rods. I don't stand the rods up now, I lay them down in front of me. Too many times I've casted and caught a rod behind me. Really one of those things which you need to flesh out for yourself. My style may not work for you. If you are 100% confident with your canoe, and feel you can take 5 rods, then do so. Otherwise, start with less, and add more... or start with more and take stuff away if you feel it is too much. From experience, tipping a canoe can be a pain. My last tip was very expensive. Recovered rods, lost lures and such, broke my trolling motor, soaked and ruined a $300 camera and my cell phone. From there I made outriggers to stabilize me - and I decided some places just weren't worth my effort to paddle. Now in a kayak, virtually nothing is off limits!! But hey, a canoe is a great place to start and even stay if you love it!

Hey, a catch is a catch and eliminates the skunk, no matter what it is!! Pickerel have saved my day before, too. My experience -- they bite anything.

Welcome aboard!

Welcome aboard, JB!

Welcome aboard, Dustin!

Exactly my experience this year, too! I was going to ask here, glad PSN81 did. These bass have torn me up this year. But this is on my usual fishing reservoirs. Also, I caught one bass this summer that ate craws and spit it out when I caught 'im. Never seen that in all the years I've fished here... Usually it is shad in the gullet. 'Course I don't recall it their teeth were any lless sharp or not. I wonder, too, if there isn't a side effect to some of the treatments used to control various invasive species. Perhaps new blends of chemicals affect tooth growth? I've been on the water when the DGIF biologists came out and sprayed chemicals around the entire shoreline (in the water, of course).

Welcome aboard, DJSkeeter!

Joey, gaining confidence can be tough, but here's a tip I read (I think here, and I posted on my experiment, too). Take one bait with you. Just one. And fish it. For me, I experimented with a 4" BPS stick-o in color "Pepper Frog Hot Orange" - it's a laminate. I only took a bag with me and fished it wacky style. Boy did I find confidence in that bait. It is a major staple in what I throw today. Now I've tried other colors which did not turn out as successful. Confidence can be a mystical thing (at least how it's described by many). I'm not so sure your personal confidence is transmitted through your rod to the line down to the lure and ultimately weakening the fish to bite. Don't think it really works that way. Start with standard colors like watermelon (and variants), green pumpkin, black, etc. Start there and move on. Slow your TX rig down. Let your wacky rig marinate in the water for a while, or if you do that all the time, then change your retrieve. Write down what works (or make mental notes like I do) and what doesn't. A friend of mine swears by pink at one of the reservoirs we fish. Pink does absolutely nothing for me (although I've not taken *only* pink out and tried to gain confidence in it). But for him, pink catches bass. Confidence one person has in a bait won't necessarily translate to another person for the same bait.

Thanks. When I'm in the market for a new rod, I may take a long hard look at these. Will probably have to order straight from the maker as the links they supply either don't show any, or have only 2 models.

Those look great, Dave. Do you use these? And if so, how do they compare to rods like St. Croix, etc.

Longest I have fished in my kayak is 6'6" (not including when I target bream where I'll sometimes take long poles w/o reels up to 12' in length). Preference is to fish shorter rods. Favorite length is 5'9", but I go to 6'3" (which was used to catch the 6.6lber in my avatar last week). Lately I've been carrying 3 rods. 2 baitcasters and 1 spinning setup. Sometimes I'll take 1 rod, normally 2, but when I try new stuff, I take 3 or 4. Over three rods, though, tends to get messy and frustrating in my yak, so I try to take a "less-is-more" approach. I'm a shorter guy, and I fish out of a 12' boat. You learn to adjust when the fish make runs from one side around to the other. A longer rod is not necessarily an advantage there. It's all in how YOU make it work. 2 cents...